The device invented is to lift the toilet seat with hands free operation. This is achieved by using foot power. The device includes a foot pedal, cables, reduction spool, lifting arm, spring hinge, base, cable block and counter weight. To operate this device all you have to do is step on the pedal which will pull a short cable, which will rotate the reduction spool, to pull a longer cable, which will pull a lifting arm with a adjustable counter weight attached (to counter balance the seat), this will rotate the spring hinge, the spring is to help lift the seat and to help in lowering the seat. When you are done simply take your foot off the pedal and the seat will come down on its own, when not in use it is always in the down position. The device is mounted to the toilet where a standard toilet seat is normally bolted. The adjustable counter weight can be moved up and down the lifting arm to accommodate different weight seats. A small child can lift the seat easily when counter balanced properly.
The prior art was to manually lift the seat with your hands. This is very unsanitary, and some persons would forget to put the seat down when leaving, which doesn't help the male, female relationship at all. This seat would work great in public rest rooms where hands free operation is a must, especially in the restaurant business. It would also be very helpful in hospitals, where patients can not bend down to lift the seat, and of course for health reasons. There are other toilet seat lifters that have been patented few if any are in the market place so far. One would guess that the reason for that is there are too many parts, too hard to clean, have to have the right style toilet, have to mount to floor or wall or they are electric (water and electricity don't mix) and how many times do you see a wall outlet next to a toilet? A battery powered model would require regular battery replacement. There are also hydraulic cylinder type seat lifters where the cylinder is in the toilet tank, not all toilets will be able to accommodate this type of mechanism, and the hardware in the tank would have to be replaced for this system.
Referring to the drawings there is a toilet bowl #13, with a tank # 15, with a seat #11, attached to a hinge # 10, the base plate # 5 is sandwiched between the toilet and hinge # 10 which is mounted to the toilet were the toilet seat is normally mounted by conventional hardware, a spring # 14 is attached to the hinge # 10 this helps lift the seat and keeps the seat from slamming down, the lifting arm # 8 serves as the hinge pin for hinge # 10, roll pins # 25 go through hinge # 10 and lifting arm # 8 keeping them in time, spring # 14 fits over lifting arm # 8, bracket # 16 is attached to base # 5 and is used to put tension on spring # 14. Cable block # 7 with adjusting screw # 18 can be slid on lifting arm #8 to adjust how high you want the seat to lift up, counter weight # 9 with adjusting screw # 17 can be slid on arm #8 to adjust for the weight of seat # 11. Shaft # 23 is welded to base # 5, pulley # 20 and #21 rotate on shaft # 23, roll pin # 24 goes through pulleys # 20 and # 21 to keep them timed properly, cable block # 19 is attached by screw # 22 to base # 5, cable #2 is attached to pulley # 21 and slides through cable block # 19, the other end of cable # 2 is attached to foot pedal # 1. Cable # 6 is attached the pulley # 20, the other end of cable # 6 is attached to cable block # 7, cover # 3 covers pulleys # 20, # 21 and cable block # 19 it is attached by nut # 4 screwed on shaft # 23.
Now it is time to lift the seat with the seat lifter invention, the user stands in front of the toilet as he usually would, he steps down on foot pedal # 1, which pulls cable #2 which pulls pulley # 21 that pulls pulley # 20(they both rotate on shaft # 23) that pulls cable # 6, which pulls cable block # 7, that pulls down lifting arm # 8, hinge #10 lifts up and spring # 14 releases tension as hinge raises up. When foot pedal # 1 is fully depressed then the seat is all the way up simply keep standing on the pedal until finished and then release the pedal and the sequence stated above will reverse and the seat will go back to the down position. The seat can be manually lifted up if need be, the mechanism will not be affected. The seat lifter is made of metal with the exception of a plastic cover covering the pulleys of the reduction spool. It is possible that certain parts could be made out of plastic such as but not exclusive of the pulleys and the foot pedal.